The use of external stores on aircraft is known.
For example, external fuel tanks, also known as drop tanks, are an expendable fuel tank carried by aircraft for long-range flights. The drop tank may be jettisoned from the aircraft, for example, in an emergency or after the fuel within it has been expended.
Typically, external stores impose a drag penalty on the aircraft carrying them.
Furthermore, when carrying such external stores, the aerodynamic properties of the aircraft tend to be changed. The moment of inertia of the aircraft may also be increased, thereby reducing roll rates of the aircraft. Also, the distribution of mass for the aircraft carrying such external stores tends to be different to the distribution of mass for the aircraft alone.
Typically, in order for a particular type of aircraft to be permitted to carry a particular type of external store, the external store must be certified for the particular type of aircraft by some authority.
In a separate field to aircraft external stores, sensing equipment used by aircraft is typically mounted on the aircraft forebody. However, achieving optimal locations of multiple sensors tends to be difficult due to the lack of space in the aircraft nose.